Qingyi VS Huadan
Friday, August 7, 2009, 8:17 PM
A Qing Yi actress portrays a lady of good and sympathetic character Usually of a quiet, gentle disposition and graceful in her movements, she is the Chinese ideal of a beautiful woman. As a wife she is faithful, as a young girl a model of propriety. Her good breeding is shown by the graceful, flowing movements of her 'water sleeves'. The Qing Yi's costume is elegant, simple and of good quality, but not as vivid in color as that of the Hua Dan. Her singing is of a pure, high-pitched quality.For a Hua Dan actress the gay, flirtatious personality of a young girl is required. Usually not of such a high social standing as the Qing Yi, the Hua Dan actress with her coy, coquettish and generally quicker movements arrests the attention of the audience. This is a difficult part to play successfully. The Hua Dan's facial expression is continually changing and her mischievous eye movements are particularly attractive. Because of her lower social status more hand movements are required, as in olden times it was not considered polite for a well-bred Chinese lady to show her hands. Costume, usually vivid in design and color, consists of a jacket and trousers, and a red or coloews handkerchief is carried to flutter in the actress's hand. Her character, needless to say, is not as virtuous as that of the Qing Yi and therefore her singing voice has a gayer and slightly stronger quality. She also has to do more speaking than singing.
A Gui Men Dan is the young, unmarried girl, who in later life will develop into a Qing Yi or a Hua Dan; her immaturity is clearly shown in her reactions, for though naughty and slightly mischievous, she has not the confidence of the Hua Dan, although her schemes and plans are often just as successful.
From http://www.chinahighlights.com/travelguide/beijing-opera/roles.htm#dan
DAN- Female roles of several categories.
i. QING YI ( Ch'ing I)- Lady of good character. Quiet gentle disposition. Graceful flowing movements in "water sleeves" costume. Elegant but not vivid. Singing voice is high pitched.
ii. HUA DAN ( Hua Tan)- Flirtatious young girl role. Usually not as high a social standing as Qing Yi. Coy and quick movements. A very difficult part to play. Attractive eye movements and continually changing facial expression. Vivid costume featuring handkerchief to flutter in her hand. Strong voice but more speaking than singing.
iii. GUI MEN DAN (Kuei Men Tan) - Young unmarried girl. This role may turn into Qing Yi or Hua Dan. Mischievous but not as much as Hua Dan. Immature reactions and movements. iv. DAO MA DAN (Tao Ma Tan) - Female Warrior role. Trained for acting and singing but performs highly skillful martial movements often with feathered headdress. Still a very feminine role. The now famous role of Disney's "MULAN" was based on Hua Mulan who disguised herself as a man to prevent her father from being conscripted into the military. She served for 12 years during the SouthNorth Dynasty and was decorated as a national hero.
From http://www.chinatownconnection.com/beijing-opera.htm
5)Dan
The Dan (旦) refers to any female role in Beijing opera. Dan roles were originally divided into five subtypes. Old
women were played by laodan, martial women were wudan, young female warriors were daomadan, virtuous and
elite women were qingyi, and vivacious and unmarried women were huadan. One of Mei Lanfang’s most
important contributions to Beijing opera was in pioneering a sixth type of role, the huashan. This role type
combines the status of the qingyi with the sensuality of the huadan.
This website shows Traditional Meets Experimental--Modernizing Peking Opera on the Mainland :
http://www.sinorama.com.tw/en/show_issue.php?id=199678507050E.TXT&table=2&h1=Art+and+Culture&h2=Traditional+Opera
One of Mei Lanfang's most important contributions to Beijing opera was in pioneering a sixth type of role, the “huashan.” This role type combines the nobility and grace of the “qingyi” with the flirtatious, extrovert characteristics of the “huadan.”
Director: All
Playwrights: Isaac
Secretary: Rachel
Costume: Wenzhen
Set: Priscilla
Lights/Sound: Priscilla
Movement coach: Saad
TSDian
Pris's Rojak I.blog
Rach's Rojak I.blog
Isaac's Rojak I.blog
Other TSD bloggers,
Melvyn
Isaac
Afiqah
Chenxing
Mark
Rachel
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